2005 European Championships Begin By InsidePOOL Staff  An all-time high of 34 nations are being represented at the 2005 European Championships, taking place at the four-star NH Koningshof Hotel in Veldhoven, Netherlands. The 2005 championships are featuring an 8- and 9-ball tournament for men, women, and wheelchair participants. And as if that isn’t enough, the championships are also playing host to a men’s and women’s team tournament and a straight pool tournament, making it the biggest EPC event held to date.
The action began early on April 21 with the straight pool tournament in both the men and women’s brackets. On the men’s side, Niels Feijen and Thorsten Hohmann, both playing at their best, met in the quarterfinals, and despite the bipartisan Dutch crowd, Germany’s Hohmann defeated the defending Holland champion to advance to face another Dutchman, Alex Lely. In that match-up, former world champion Hohmann seemed unstoppable as his brilliant play sent him to the finals. Another German, Nicolas Otterman, bested Sweden’s Tom Storm to set up an all-German final on April 24, where Hohmann proved to be too much for his fellow countryman, winning the match with ease by making three runs of 125 and averaging 50 points per turn. Not to be outdone, the straight pool event on the ladies’ side of the field provided some exciting action as 18-year-old Austrian Jasmin Ouschan toppled defending champion Line Kjorsvik of Norway in one of the semifinals. Diana Stateczny and Daniela Benz, both of Germany, battled in the other semifinal, which Stateczny won in style 75-23. In the finals, the young Austrian overcame an early deficit to Stateczny to end the German’s hopes for a title, claiming the match and the straight pool championship 75-60. Visit InsidePOOL for the latest news in the sport of billiards and pool.
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